Groom Your Dog -- and Bond With It

Our notions of grooming often conjure up images of Fifi the poodle being primped by the pros, or dog show contestants being made over before their time in the spotlight. In reality, grooming originated in the wild. Wolves and other wild canines regularly groom each other, using their front teeth like combs. They will also lick each other's ears, faces and other areas to help their pack mates clean otherwise hard-to-reach places. The skin stimulation and repetitive motion relaxes the animals, so they appear to look forward to their grooming periods.

Recent studies suggest that most mammals, including non-human primates, socially bond during grooming. It is a literal "I'll scratch your back if you scratch mine" unspoken agreement. A certain level of trust must also exist, since the individual being groomed is in a potentially vulnerable situation.

Therefore, to your dog, the grooming process means much more than a quick cleaning. As author and trainer Kathy Diamond Davis of Oklahoma City, Okla. advises, "You can use this time to strengthen your relationship with your dog and to cement what hopefully will be a lifelong friendship." Here's how, in three easy steps.

Step One: Get a Good CombDavis, who is the author of Therapy Dogs: Training Your Dog to Reach Others (Dogwise Publishing), suggests that, no matter what kind of dog you have, you should invest in a good comb. Look for a stainless steel comb that does not have any sharp points. "Rough handling and grooming obviously harms the dog's trust in being touched, and handling that is too tentative can do the same," she said. "The feel of the comb against your dog's skin has to fall somewhere in the middle of that spectrum." Brands that she likes include Chris Christensen combs and #1 All Systems combs and products.

She admits that some breeds may require a good brush as well, but that is mostly in preparation for the combing. By the end of the grooming session, you should be able to run a comb through your dog's fur, especially if your pet is a long-haired breed. Davis also warns against using too many products, such as detanglers, shampoos, insecticides and perfumes, since dog skin is extremely sensitive. You may actually be doing your dog a favor if you keep such product purchases to a minimum.

Step Two: Prepare the PoochDavis owns a Belgian tervuren, which is a large sheepdog-type breed, along with one other dog. The tervuren, which had another home before hers, initially squirmed and whined during grooming sessions, not unlike a child getting its first haircuts. "This dog was just not having any of it," said Davis.

She determined her Belgian friend, named Redeemer, needed some basic behavior training first. While he sort of knew commands like "sit" and "lay down," she further instilled these with positive reinforcements, like plenty of head pats and sweet talk. When Redeemer passed his mini obedience training sessions, Davis was able to move to the final step.

Step Three: Groom Gently, Regularly and ThoroughlyHave your dog lie down, either on a non-slip surface, such as a special mat dedicated to this purpose, or even, as Davis recommends, on you. She ties a sheet around herself and has the dog lie on her outstretched legs. Davis begins with a rub down massage, using her fingertips in a circular or back and forth motion all around the dog's skin. Sometimes this step may be enough for short hair dogs that do not need a daily combing. The massage improves skin circulation and helps to distribute natural oils throughout your dog's fur.

When combing, imagine that you are working out tangles in a young child's hair. Hold sections of fur and slowly work from the end of the section up through the tangle, being careful not to scratch or pull. When a comb can run through the entire coat, a quick brushing can distribute oils again and serve as one final doggy massage.

In addition to fur maintenance, Davis also uses this time to check her dogs' ears for dirt and parasites. When doing so, she massages the outside bottom of the ears, which seems to be a "sweet spot" for canines, perhaps because that is an area they target when one dog grooms another. She also clips her dogs' toenails, and checks their paws, eyes and other areas. Davis additionally recommends placing apple cider vinegar on a tissue and swabbing it on your dog's anal region to help prevent bacterial infections.

What may at first seem like torture to your dog will likely become a much-anticipated daily event. "Redeemer used to avoid me around grooming time, but now I have to try to keep him off of me because he wants to be groomed all day long," she said. The proof of her dog's trust is how she leaves him after each combing and cleaning session. Davis said, "He's usually sleeping like a baby."

Rate This Article

Posted on September 13, 2007

mitch says: My dog likes being groomed, but sure doesn't like being trimmed. I will try applying some of the same ideas to trimming and see where it gets me.
Thanks for the great article.

Posted on October 7, 2007

Sandi says: I to enjoyed your article & will try, but my 2 dogs, husky & husky/collie mix get jealous when grooming one or the other, also, my husky/collie mix has tender feelings & I try not hurting him during grooming, but his fir is hard to groom & daily maintenance is hard. Weekly yes, but by then he has burrs etc....Any suggestions on how!!!

Posted on October 7, 2007

karen Inman says: My dog doesn't like her front paws and face trimmed. She will try to bite me. Any suggestions

Posted on November 2, 2007

Randy says: I have a 7 mo. old golden retriever who is very lovable, but when you start to play with him he gets really aggressive and starts to nip & bite. Any suggestions how to correct this behavior?

Posted on November 13, 2007

Crise Billwalk says: Is hairloss around dogs' joints normal? Any help or advice will be dearly appreciated.

Posted on December 13, 2007

fritz smith says: Any suggestions on how i can get my dog to stop eating socks and chewing the pillows?

Posted on December 21, 2007

Lisa Villar says: my puppy gets up everyday at 5:00am, he wants to pee and poop within 15 seconds of stretching. He will not stop barking untill i get up too. My husband works late at night and I need to find away to keep him quite.

Posted on January 5, 2008

connor says: my dog is awesome!

Posted on January 19, 2008

abby says: Sometimes he is super aggresive and hyper but other times Bruce is just ahappy dog,sweet and cuddley

Posted on January 22, 2008

alyssa says: he/she is so cute

Posted on March 11, 2012

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